Electric-cable connection.



W. J. LITTLEHALES.

I ELECTRIC CABLE CONNECTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 28, 1909.

948,563; Patented Feb. 8, 1910.

" ATTOR Y.

mural) s'rArrEs PATENT orricn WILLIAM J'. LITTLEHALES, OF NEW BRITAIN,CONNECTICUT.

ELECTRIC-CABLE CONNECTION.

I of connecting a high tension electric conductor with the end of aspark plug such as is common in the ordinary gas or explosive engine,and it has for its object the provision of such a device which canreadily be clasped or secured to the end of a spark plug without thenecessity of employing a screw driver or other tool, which, furthermore,is held in close electrical contact with the member to which it issecured, and which also cannot shake loose from the plug, thus obviatingthe annoyance frequently resulting from imperfeet connections and alsofrom loosening of the parts.

My invention has been clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawingsin which similar characters denote similar parts, and in whichl igure 1is atop plan view of a spark plug and an electric-cable connectedtherewith in conformity with my invention. Fig. :2 is a side viewthereof. Fig. 3 is a. section on line 3, 3 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 shows atop view of my improved device opened and released from the spark plug.

Briefly stated, my improved connection comprises a pair of jaws one ofwhich is movable relatively to the other and is hookshaped so as toclasp the stem of a spark plug, the two jaws being held in closed condition by a pin-andssocket .connection which is rendered effective toclose the jaws by virtue of the resiliency of one of the jaws, as willhereinafter be fully set forth.

Referring to the drawings, Srepresents' a spark plug of ordinaryconstruction, the upper part of the stem 8 of whichis provided with anannular groove 10 adapted to receive one aw of my improved connectiondevice.

This device is secured at the end of an electric conductor 11 which isheavily insulated Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 28, 1909.

Patented Feb. 8, 1910.

Serial No. 474.776.

by suitable insulating material 12, the conductor 11 is electricallyconnected with a thilnble 13 of my improved connector, or as it mayproperly be'called clip, and has a. stationary jaw 14 which is beveledat 15 so as to present a surface against which the reduced portion ofthe spark plug 8, more particularly in the groove 10 thereof. can rest.

livoted to the stationary jaw 14, as at 16, is the movable jaw 17 of thedevice which is n'efcrablv resilient verticallvas seen in Fi l 2. andthe free end of which is of such thickness as to readily enter thegroove 10 above referredto. By referring to Figs. 1

and 4 it will be seen that the movable jaw is hook-shaped so that whenthe two jaws are closed as shown in Fig. 1, the spark plug will befirmly grasped thereby, inasmuch as the stationary jaw 1t cngag'cs oneside of the head a of the spark plug end while the hook portion of themovable jaw 17 will engage the diametrically opposite side thereof inthe groove 10 thereof.

The means for holding the two jaws in closed position consist preferablyof a pinand-socket connection which comprises in the present instance anaperture or recess 20 in the stationary jaw ll'into which a projection21 provided on the movable jaw 17 can enter. the organization being suchthat when the spark plug is in place between the two jaws. theprojection 21 will by virtue of its cone shape, not have completelyentered into the recess, so that a certain .cam action results and tendsto bring both of the jaws toward each other and in close contact withthe spark plug.

By referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen that the jaw 17 is swung openfar enough to per-- mit the ready inscrti'on' or rcnu *al of the sparkplug so that the device is admirably adapted-fonusc on -gas engines asgenerally employed in automobiles.

It will also be understood that by virtue of the construction abovedescribed, the cable can be removed from the spark plug by swinging thesame at a right angle to its longitudinal axis, instead ot pulling theend of the cable backward upon itself as has to be done in theconnections now in general use.

Many changes may be made 111 the device I J dearting from the gist ofthe invention.

andhaving a cam-shaped projection adapted to enter said recess forclosing said aws.

claim: v WILLIAM J. LITTLEHALES. 5 In a cable clip the combination witha Witnesses:

especiallyin the method of locking the jaws together, Without in any Waychanging Q1 stationary jaw having a recess, a resilient CHAS. F.SCHMELZ, movable jaw plvoted to the stationary jaw ALFRED C. 000KB.

